Five Senses
by summermelon
Summary: The five senses are heavily involved in between the chemistry between these two. Each chapter will focus on one sense and how it brought our favourite doctors closer. Aizawa Kousaku/Shiraishi Megumi. Rated T for minor cursing and some descriptive medical situations.
1. Chapter 1: Sight

**Five Senses**

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Blue or any of the characters.

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 **Chapter 1: Sight**

"Summer festival, huh..." She mumbled as she saw a poster on her way to the hospital. It would be held tonight, at a shrine not too far from the hospital. She didn't have many memories related to festivals, always prioritizing her studies before anything else. While her friends were dressed in beautiful yukata, watching fireworks with their respective boyfriends, catching goldfishes, eating junk food, the short haired flight doctor could be found with her eyes glued to textbooks. Not even once had she envied her friends, especially once she saw her name on top of the examination ranking list.

Not until today when she finally realized how much she had missed from her youth, but she was finally where she belonged so there was no need for regrets. She could still go to the festival tonight. Her shift was supposed to end at 8 so she could probably catch the fireworks right before it launched, but going alone would be very lonely. Hiyama would be on night duty. Third-wheeling on Fujikawa and Saejima was not an option, and that left her with...

As she closed her eyes to think her mind wandered to a certain neurosurgeon, imagining him standing by her side as they watched the colorful fireworks blooming in the night sky only to shake her had to dismiss the seemingly impossible situation.

 _There's no way he would want to go with me._

No matter how many years have passed, sometimes she could still feel the distance between her and the neurosurgeon. He had returned to lifesaving to help them but they still sat at least two seats apart at Mary Jane's. When the four of them went to the canteen for lunch, he still opted to be seated at a different table. It wasn't as if they still felt the rivalry from many years before, in fact they have all been emotionally connected over the years of working together. Although she guessed it wasn't the same when it comes to private matters.

Her feet dragged her back to the hospital building, brushing offs the idea of inviting a certain someone to the fireworks festival. Changed into her usual blue scrubs, she was back into work-mode. Doing follow-ups for the in-ward patients, giving lectures to the fellows, and monitoring changes in the ICU patients. It was a rather quiet day. Their phone hadn't rung since morning.

"Hiyama, you're having it slow today, eh?" Fujikawa said to his friend who was busy teaching Haitani how to change the chest tube in one of their ICU patients. His voice had successfully stolen Shiraishi's attention from the patient's medication history.

"Don't jinx it, Fujikawa."

Just as they were talking the phone rang and Hiyama glared at the glasses-wearing doctor, who could only grin sheepishly. Him and his loud mouth as usual. The three doctors ran towards the ER and Shiraishi grabbed the phone in lightning speed.

"This is Shohoku Emergency Care Center."

"We have a request for Doctor Heli. A few of the stands at the festival site collapsed. Four people are injured including one children is unconscious and one pregnant lady's membrane ruptured."

Shiraishi looked at the operator who gave her a sign that the helicopter was ready to fly anytime. Only 1 hour before sunset, they don't have much time. She need to think, fast.

"Hiyama, you go with Saejima and Aizawa. Natori, Yukimura, and I will go in the next ride. Fujikawa, please receive the patients here. Be prepared for the worst fractures."

Immediately everybody moved into action. The first group ran towards the helipad while she gave Natori a brief explanation before assisting her on the scene later. It was the fellow's first flight after the missed pelvic injury incident, she hoped he would learn from his mistakes and be more thorough with his physical examinations.

"Hiyama will deal with the pregnant patient and Aizawa would be busy with the children's head. We don't know how the other two are doing so it's better to have more personnel on site to assess the situation quickly, just in case we need to transport them with our helicopter."

The helicopter couldn't fly after sunset; they were racing against time. Natori nodded as he seemed to understand just how tricky the situation was even with a smaller number of casualties. It was refreshing to see him without his usually conceited personality for once. Little by little, the fellows were growing and it made her proud as one of their teacher.

"The helicopter's back. Let's go." The two doctors grabbed their equipment bag and rode the helicopter, hoping the situation would be as bad as she had predicted earlier. With her headphone's on, Shiraishi turned the radio on and called her comrades.

"Hiyama-sensei, Aizawa-sensei, can you hear me?"

"Shiraishi, come quickly. I am still busy with the pregnant lady. I am delivering the baby on the spot. Aizawa seems busy too."

"Any problem with the pregnant mother or potential asphyxia for the baby?"

"No. She's 38-39 weeks pregnant with unknown history of pregnancy but her water broke 30 minutes ago due to shock from the incident. The baby's heartbeat seems well. Yes ma'am, push when the next contraction comes! I still hadn't checked the other two patients because my hands are kind of busy." Chaos could still be heard from the background, with another wave of pounding headache.

"Got it. If the mother and baby are well, we'll send them to the closest perinatal center with an ambulance. Aizawa-sensei, how about you?"

"5-year-old boy with an abdominal trauma going into shock. Me and Saejima are still trying to stabilize him as we locate the source of hemorrhage." He too sounded busy at the time so apparently it was the right decision to send more people.

"Got it. How many minutes left until we arrive?"

"Two minutes." The pilot answered and she turned her attention back to the radio.

"Me, Natori, and Yukimura will arrive in two minutes. You two please concentrate with your patients." Her eyes glanced over the fellow beside her, he looked focus and ready to go on the field despite the trouble he had the last time.

"Natori, we'll handle one patient each. If there's anything you are unsure off just call me."

"Yes." His voice was calm but she could note the spark of uncertainty in his eyes.

"I trust you."

The three of them stepped out of the helicopter right after the doors were opened, ran at full speed towards the direction where the fire departments showed them. There they saw the other two patients lying down on the ground, neither looked like they suffered any serious injury but one of them was an elder.

"Ma'am, can you hear me?" She asked the elder woman who kept her eyes squeezed shut even when she gave a pain stimulus on her chest. Something didn't seem right. Swiftly she did a head-to-toe examination as Yukimura monitored the patient's vital signs. Her skin felt clammy and the monitor showed a flat line on screen.

 _No, it can't be._

She took her penlight and checked the pupillary reflexes one more time, hoping she was wrong the first time but the result was still the same. Negative, fully dilated.

She was dead, and just mere minutes from then another patient was pronounced dead.

Aizawa's patient.

* * *

"I'm counting on you." Shiraishi bowed to the ambulance before it drove off to the perinatal center with Hiyama and Saejima, the mother and her newborn baby girl after a long few hours of birth. The other patient they had was a young man with multiple fractures on the arms and legs. It was too complicated so he was brought to Shohoku for further treatment with Natori and Yukimura along as soon as they noticed how terrible his condition was. As for the patients they lost...

She glanced to her side and found the other doctor dressed in a flight suit with the usual red equipment backpack. He was standing tall, still gazing over the direction where the ambulance had left before. The situation was back to how it was before. They were both dismissed and the only thing left to do was go back to the hospital and finish all the remaining paperworks for today's incident.

"Aizawa-sensei, good work today as usual." She gave him a thin smile.

"No, it wasn't." Shiraishi noticed his hands clutching itself hard as his knuckles turned pale. He was blaming himself for the patient's death.

Just like she was.

"It was unfortunate." The words were not only meant for him, for them both.

 _But,_

Even if it was unsaid, they could hear his word hanging in the air. No matter how hard they studied and worked, there was nothing they could do to defy death. When the changes are made permanent, they wouldn't be able to restart the patient's heartbeat anymore. As humans they have their own limit, they both knew that very well but they couldn't help but think of the other possibilities and what ifs.

Neither of them realized that the sunset had been long gone and the stars had appeared in the sky. The faint noise from the crowds on the festival could be heard from the distance. Despite the incident from before, the summer festival carried on as if nothing had happened. Perhaps it was the resident's way of showing that they wouldn't let sorrow drag them away from the other joyful things in life they could be celebrating on, reminding the two doctors that they should've realized that too.

"The baby from just now, she survived the incident when people older than her didn't. She was a miracle; don't you think?" She turned to him, whose eyes were still staring blankly at the blinking lights from the summer festival though his brain continued replaying the scene from before.

"If I could have saved that boy, he could still enjoy this festival next year." His words were mumbled, as if it was directed to no one but himself, although she could catch each and every word perfectly from their short distance. The neurosurgeon walked took a few steps ahead of her and she got a perfect view of his back.

When she first knew Aizawa, the first quality she associated him with is 'strong'. It was from knowing how well he did on his first flight duty, when she and the other fellows were useless on the scene he dealt with it in impeccable calmness, proceeding with the appropriate procedure flawlessly. The first time she saw his back, they looked so broad and strong even when he was amputating Kuroda-sensei's arm. It wasn't only her, everybody else too thought about him that way.

Slowly, as time passed by her opinions on him changed.

There were times when his back didn't look as strong as before, instead frail and small as if it was ready to break anytime. His tears and sobs as he knelt in front of his grandmother, when he saw her off to her elder home, and when he had failed to save his patients. Exactly like right now. All the time she saw it, she wanted to reach her fingers towards him the way he chased and put his hand on her shoulder when she was shattered from Kuroda-sensei's incident but never did because she always wasted her time thinking if the touch were appropriate and missed the opportunity to do so. What he did was so simple but his presence made her felt less lonely back then.

Today, it was her turn to pay him back.

Her slender fingers were extended to grab on the edge of his scrub sleeve, tugging on it lightly which stole his attention. The two spoke with their eyes, communicating through unspoken words of consolation to mend each other's broken pieces. After all, nobody else would truly understand your pain unless they went through it with you and they did.

Just in time, the fireworks lit up in the sky stealing their attention for one moment. Finally, she was able to see the fireworks directly in front of her eyes, though in a different way from what she had imagined. In the form of an extended shift and following an unfortunate event. She wasn't wearing a _yukata_ , instead covered in her blood-stained lifesaving blue scrubs. Her hand was holding onto her stethoscope while the other was still on her companion's sleeves, no bag of goldfishes nor candied apple on a stick. But she couldn't have imagined anyone better than Aizawa to be by her side that time.

The young woman stole a glance to her side and saw the different colors reflected on his face and right before she could look away, he looked back at her and found themselves healed in the other's eyes. Suddenly she felt something covering the hand was still tugging onto his blue scrubs, his hand enveloping hers with his warmth as if letting her know that he was feeling better already. He squeezed her hand for one second before letting it go and her hands dropped back to her sides again. Their heads were turned back into the bright changing colors decorating the starry summer sky, admiring the beauty with their thoughts fully with the figure beside them.

At the moment, neither knew the true reason behind their rising heartbeat. They blamed it on the loud fireworks thumping and the leftover adrenaline from the previous incident. It would take many more opportunities for them to acknowledge the name of this feeling.

In their case, it was never love at first sight. It was falling in love harder in every gaze into the other's eye.

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Author's note: First chapter done! As most of you must have guessed, this will be a five-chaptered fic so there will be four more chapters ahead involving the rest of our senses set from season 1 to 3 and possibly some future AU.

As usual, please let me know what you think about this fic, how I could improve this fic, and any prompts you'd like to read. Every word from you guys boosts my motivation to write, thank you for that and also to all who contributed in keeping this fandom alive. We still have a long way until the movie in 2018 so let's stay motivated ^^

Kimchi/summermelon


	2. Chapter 2: Hearing

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Blue & the characters.

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 **Chapter 2: Hearing**

"Aizawa-sensei,"

He had heard her say that for so many times before. Whether directly to his face or from the other side of the phone for consultations, they have been working together for years after all. Even when he was no longer a part of the lifesaving team, whenever he heard her say his name he felt as if he came back to where he truly belonged. Her feminine soothing voice that nobody else could've replaced, doesn't matter how many times he had tried to deny he had always subconsciously longed to hear it over and over again.

But not this way, when her voice sounded so weak, so desperate, and lifeless. A few minutes ago she still behaved normally although a bit stressed from a cardiac tamponade case so early in the morning. He could note that in her voice as she enthusiastically explained every detail of the case in one of their rare chances of sharing a table for lunch. Everything changed after she answered the phone call and her eyes suddenly looked empty and dull. He heard her mumbled some words like 'yes' and 'I know though it was barely understandable, until she said his name and the look of horror in her eyes was enough signal for him to see that something was not right.

"Shiraishi, what is it?"

"My father,"

He remembered, the internal medicine professor from Meiho University Hospital. Shiraishi Hirofumi, which coincidentally happen to be his colleague's father. One thing Aizawa prominently remembered about him was his progressing lung cancer that Shiraishi had told in one of her drunk shenanigans. This could be a bad sign...

"His condition deteriorated. His consciousness..."

Everything else went as quick as if it was on fast forward. She immediately burst into quiet tears, the sorrowful kind that breaks your heart as you watch each drop fell on her cheeks. Aizawa stood from his seat and grabbed her by the shoulder, pulling her out of the hospital cafetaria to the staff lounge, ignoring the curious stares of other staffs. On the way to the door they encountered Hiyama and Fujikawa who obviously wouldn't let them pass without asking why, speculations popping in their minds.

"It's Shiraishi's father." That was all he said as he gestured them towards the still sobbing woman beside him. He had to pull her to keep her standing straight and he barely knew what he had to do at such times. Luckily Hiyama and Fujikawa, the more empathetic member of their team quickly grasped the situation and helped him dragging the young woman inside. They too knew about their friend's father's health condition.

In less than 30 minutes they had packed her belongings. Hiyama had helped her change out of her scrubs and booked a train ticket to Shiraishi's hometown. Fujikawa had informed Tachibana about his friend's situation and she got a permission to leave early. Aizawa himself had brought her a warm can of tea and called a taxi to help her get to the station. The three staffs watched her leave from the hospital's main entrance and shared glances that were equally filled with confusion.

"Will she be alright?" Fujikawa broke the silence, voicing the question they all were thinking about. Hiyama just shrugged while Aizawa stayed silent. Neither of them knew the answer, but recalling their friend's pale face, trembling hands, and quietness was probably a sign that the answer was 'no'. They could only hope for the best as they went back to their previous stations and continued working for the day.

They got their answers two days from then, when they attended Shiraishi Hirofumi's wake ceremony, Saejima too. The neurosurgeon and lifesaving staffs saw their friend standing tall in her black dress, greeting all the guests that came to her father's wake, pretending not to be affected by all the sickening expression of condolences as if everyone was trying to remind her about her loss every second.

He knew how she felt because that was exactly how it was on his grandmother's own wake last year.

The eulogies for Shiraishi Hirofumi didn't seem to make the situation any better. It felt like a constant reminder that his friend's father was no longer in the world. He stole a glance to where Shiraishi sat beside the podium with her still sobbing mother. Not a single sign of tear on her face anymore but even from afar he could note the emptiness in her eyes as she bowed to everyone who took turns to say a word for her late father.

That was not a good sign.

Fujikawa and Saejima went ahead before the ceremony ended because he had an emergency call from the hospital. They were understaffed, even with Mitsui and Tachibana on flight duty. Not long after that, they called Hiyama too and Aizawa was left alone. Neurosurgery would never be understaffed without him. Everyone competed to get their hands inside somebody else's skull and operate on their nervous system so one less rival was a gift for them although at the time Aizawa couldn't even think about the interesting cases he missed. The only person in his brain was nobody else but Shiraishi Megumi and he continued watching her move, until the peak of the moment.

"Megumi, it's your turn to put a flower for father."

It was a Japanese tradition for close family members to put a flower in the coffin and saying their farewells before the body was cremated and all that's left were bones and ashes. The young woman walked slowly towards the coffin with a white chrysanthemum in her trembling hands. She stood just a few seconds longer to admire her father's still face before putting the flower right on the side of his cheek. He could see that she didn't want to leave the spot but then it was her mother's turn to say her farewell and she stepped out with her eyes still glued to the coffin.

Did he look the same way that day through her eyes?

At the exact moment he wanted to stand, shouted her name, grabbed her by the hand and ran away. Ran somewhere far away from the ceremony to help her forget, but he knew his voice wouldn't reach her heart no matter what. He couldn't just do whatever he liked and ruin someone's wake ceremony. He was a nobody who could only stay glued to his seat and it frustrated him, even until he left the hall and couldn't find Shiraishi after looking at every nook and cranny.

He couldn't say them; the words he had wanted to say since the first time he stepped into the hall. Aizawa thought he had missed his momentum until she came back to work four days after the wake. To everyone, she was the same old Shiraishi but he knew better to notice the emptiness in her eyes as he passed by her in the hallway when he returned from the ICU. He too had the same look in his eyes and he would probably still be if it weren't for her.

"Aizawa-sensei, good work today." Her smile was weak and he hated the view more than anybody else. Before she could pass by him, his hand moved unconsciously to grab her elbow. The action startled them both but quickly he came back to his senses and realized that it was necessary.

"Come with me."

"Eh- but I still-"

"Are you on flight duty?"

"N-No."

"Do you have an emergency surgery?"

"N-No."

"Good." She had no reason to be excused and he half-dragged her to an empty equipment room on the floor, the one they had used so many times as a fellow before, seeking refugee from the seemingly endless stack of paperwork and medical records to be filled besides doing follow-ups. They both went in and he signaled for the flight doctor staff to take a seat on the unused gurney right beside the window, thankfully she followed suit though still with a questioning look on her face.

"How long do you plan on keeping this bad habit of yours?" His hands were folded in front of his chest, anger evident in his eyes.

"What do you mean-"

"You." He cut in before she could have finished her sentence.

"You are not alright, so stop pretending to be one and keep all your problems to yourself."

Shiraishi's eyes widen in horror and he saw the look in her eyes as if she was a toddler who just caught red-handedly stole from the cookie jar. He blew her cover but he was not proud of it, in fact it had made him felt disappointed.

"You made me promise on _that_ day to not hold anything back, but why can't the same thing apply to you?" Again, he asked her but she hadn't said any word of reply. They both knew exactly what he had meant. On the day of his grandmother's wake, she was the one who picked him up from the darkness and it was only fair for him to do the same but why couldn't he when she made everything looked so easy?

And people said that he was the complicated one.

"But I'm fine, Aizawa-sensei. I'm sure I will forget him soon enough." She was almost on her way to stand but he stopped her again, this time holding both her shoulders and looked into her eyes.

"No, you won't. You will never do. I never did."

She looked stunned by his statement until he continued.

"You shouldn't, because he's your father and he deserves to be remembered by his daughter."

There, he saw the tears that she must have been holding for so long. He wiped it with the back of his hands but the stream was too fast so he let her pour out all her emotions into each and every drop.

"And you deserve to feel sad, because you just lost someone you loved."

 _"She must have been really happy."_

"He must have been really happy."

 _"To know that she's loved by her beloved grandson."_

"To know that he's loved by his beloved daughter."

Finally, Aizawa's words seemed to reached her as she looked up at him in disbelief. He repeated the exact words that had once came out from her lips. He was just returning a favor for someone who had saved him, saved his aching heart from the loss of someone so important. His fingers moved from her shoulder to cover her own trembling ones which were squeezing her scrub pants hard. His thumb moved, giving gentle strokes to calm her involuntary movements down and dropped his head so their foreheads touched.

The two doctors stayed in that position until the phone in his breast pocket vibrated, making him mumble all the curses in his vocabulary before the call was answered with an annoyed "Hello." A consultation from the cardiology department, this better be important. He muttered some words under his breath, something about bad timing and why he had to be on duty at a terrible time. Before he stood to leave the room, he stole a glance at the still lightly sobbing Shiraishi. He hated having to leave her midway, although before he could say anything she opened up her mouth to say.

"I'm okay."

For the first time, her answer convinced him so he left and closed the door behind him to give her some moment in private. Too bad, the consultation was truly important and he suddenly had to go into an emergency surgery to rescue the patient's brain tissue. When he finished, she was no longer in the room nor in the hospital building to be precise. She had left and gone home, was the most logical explanation for her absence and he hoped for the best.

The next morning, he came to the hospital early as usual and carried on with his work and procedures. On his way to the outpatient clinic, he stopped walking as his phone vibrated from inside his scrub pants. It was his private phone, which is peculiar because he couldn't seem to recall anyone who would call him out of nowhere. He immediately answered when he noticed the name displayed on the screen.

"Hello?" He looked around to spot her among the crowd but failed, then he tried looking up and saw the long-haired flight doctor standing beside the railings a floor above him with her phone glued to her ears. It surprised him how she noticed his presence from so high up. Did she intentionally look for him? Shouldn't she be hanging around the emergency department or something?

"Aizawa-sensei," Her voice was enough to confirm that she was better than before, although there was still a hint of sadness but it was understandable. This wasn't the end, in fact the beginning of a painful period. There was still the cremation process, the pain of seeing what used to be your loved ones turned into a pile of ash inside an urn. The sorrow wouldn't disappear immediately, fading away until there was close to none left and an occasional jolt as memories came rushing back but he survived because she was there to accompany him and whisper soothing words, reminding him that life carried on, there were good things around him that he almost failed to notice due to grief.

Now, it was his turn to be her companion in this painful journey.

"Thank you." The words she hadn't been able to say yesterday.

 _Thump._

Is this what she had felt when he said the same set of words to express his gratitude back then? He didn't felt like deserved those words, after all he only did it to return the favor. No. He wanted to do it because he wanted to share her sorrow with him too and vice versa.

Why her?

"I get it."

"Eh?"

 _Interesting_.

"No. Don't mention it." The previous was only meant for himself but he meant it. He would mention it to Fujikawa a few years from then, when he told him about his view on the meaning of marriage although he didn't mention anyone specifically but his feeling hadn't faltered.

It was her, and it would always be.

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Author's note: Done with hearing, boi this was kinda hard. Among the five chapters, I redo this one around 4 times until I dared to publish this. This is the answer to everyone who asked for something angsty-sort of? Also, to avoid confusion why Aizawa is still in neurosurgery is because the fic's set somewhere in between S2 and S3 so yes, this is set before the first chapter.

The next one will be Taste but I may need to clarify that I have no plans on escalating the rating...

... **yet**. /kicked

As always, I am looking forward to reading all your feedbacks. Thank you to all the lovely people who reviewed, favourited, followed, read, and even clicked on the fic. You are the reason why I put my works aside and typed this fic instead :p Also, if you want to you can drop me some prompts. That helps a lot in avoiding writers blocks.

Welp, what a long author's note. Anyway, see you next chapter!

Kimchi/summermelon


	3. Chapter 3: Taste

**Taste**

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Disclaimer: I do not own Code Blue & any of the characters

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Aizawa had been living alone since he first went to medical school. He studied in a university out of the small town where he used to live with his grandmother because it has a dorm free of charge for the students, didn't want to trouble his grandmother for his living expenses after all those years he depended on her. He survived the long years with his scholarship money and part-time jobs, also honorable mention to the convenience store. He wasn't an expert in cooking and it was too much of a hassle to do in between his rigorous amount of studying, so he depended a lot on the ready-made meals in the 24 hours stores.

His habit continued even as he was working in the previous emergency center and now in Shohoku too. Aside from the meal in the canteen, he was a frequent customer of the convenience store at the ground floor. Rice balls of all flavors, rice boxes, sandwiches, packed beverages, snacks, breads, you name it. He had tried them all, tightly competing with Hiyama but even he had to admit that he was nothing compared to her when it comes to convenience stores.

He had heard a mouthful about the lack of nutrition in those meals from his grandmother's calls. She never missed a chance to do so, but he always got away when he made a little white lie about sometimes cooking a meal with his dorm buddies and at least having enough vegetables in his plate all the time. Well, he was a doctor, he knew better not to consume too much of those preserved meals but he still did, as if he had any other options in life.

It was a little bit after midnight, he had a night duty with Shiraishi Megumi. They were done with follow-ups and all of the ICU patients are finally stable so they had some time for a break before they need to begin writing all the medical records. For the first time they decided to eat their meals together on a long bench in a rather quiet hallway, which is peculiar for Aizawa who always sat at a different table from his fellowship friend-rivals. It was a prove that the two of them had gotten closer though it wasn't simply because of all the times they spent working together until tonight when they were both in their last year of fellowship.

Just numbers wouldn't make him open up that easily to anyone. It was probably thanks to the night when they, drunk and disoriented, discussed about her father's cancer and his grandmother's poorly progressing dementia. Also, it wasn't for a totally friendly reason. They planned on discussing about an update in a surgical procedure and one of the in-ward patient who had dextrocardia, which is not something you encounter every day.

"When he first came in from the heli, Fujikawa suspected a pericardial effusion because he could barely hear the sound of his heart but Mitsui-sensei noted that the faint heartbeat sound got even louder as she moved her stethoscope to the right. She is so amazing."

"Yeah, though we probably would've done the same thing before we concluded a pericardial effusion. Fujikawa was just too rash and dumb to even consider dextrocardia." He said coolly as he plucked apart his disposable bamboo chopsticks.

"That's kind of mean, Aizawa-sensei."

"But you think so too, right?"

Even as kind as she was, she had to admit that a part of Aizawa was right about Fujikawa not considering other differential diagnosis. They barely avoided doing a pericardial tap on the patient thanks to Mitsui-sensei's confirmation otherwise the procedure would only do more harm than good on the patient. Apparently the patient was unconscious due to his kidney condition that got so severe because he kept missing his dialysis schedule.

Just as she was thinking, she saw the plastic _bento_ box that her friend just opened. Shiraishi had seen him with a similar shaped box for a lot of times now and it had bugged her but she never had a chance to say anything about it. Since it seemed like they were rather friendly tonight, she decided to say something about it.

"Do you like it that much, the convenience store _bento_?" Her question made his hand movement stopped in midair for a spilt second before he continued popping the piece of fish cake to his mouth and chew it slowly.

"It's not bad." That was all he said though the answer didn't seem to satisfy the woman sitting on his left.

"But it's rather unhealthy to eat that every day, right?" Shiraishi said softly, careful with her choice of words. For once, she noticed her bad habit of saying the worst thing at the worst timing possible. She wanted to avoid as much trouble as she could, especially when it comes to Aizawa. They only got closer recently and it would be tragic if everything changed in just one moment.

"Aa."

It was probably a sign that he didn't want to continue the conversation if it was not about flesh and blood, but it wouldn't be Shiraishi if she stopped just there. The long haired doctor tried to divert the conversation topic a little bit.

"Do you cook?

"No. It's a waste of time. I'd rather use the time to study or sleep."

He had a point there. At times, Shiraishi also took the easy way and poured hot water over a cup of instant noodles but her mother had always warned her about the negative effects of them and brainwashed her to cook for herself as much as possible. Sometimes her mother also came with plastic containers full of dishes for her to reheat, enough for a couple of days as long as it's kept nicely inside the refrigerator. She guessed it wasn't the case with Aizawa. His mother passed away and his grandmother barely managed to survive on her own. His father was definitely out of the case. It was safe to conclude that her friend ate those unbalanced meals every day and she started to worry about his health.

"We work so hard every day and that's the only thing you eat? You will get sick from the lack of nutrition."

"I didn't in the past two years." He made another excuse that left Shiraishi at lost for words for a moment before she opened her mouth again.

"You could be in the future, who knows what you could get-"

"I don't have any other options, do I?" He stopped her midsentence, swallowing another mouthful of rice. That was when Shiraishi did something unexpected. She took away his half-eaten rice box from his hand in a swift move that surprised the other doctor. Before he had a chance to protest, she put her own cloth-wrapped box on top of his lap.

"Tonight you should eat this. Now you have another option." She pulled out her own chopsticks and began eating the rice on the _bento_ box without giving the male doctor a chance to protest. Aizawa stared at her as if she was growing a second head or something. It was very unusual to see Shiraishi so vocal with her opinions when she was usually so reserved. There were times when she did but it was so rare, from the years they have been working together it could still be counted with his fingers, and this being one of them.

She noted that he hadn't touched the meal yet so she spoke once again.

"Eat it. I swear it's safe to eat, I made it myself earlier and tried it. I may not be as good as my mother but I guarantee it was edible." Her ramblings were ignored as the male marveled over the thing on his lap.

Shiraishi's handmade _bento_?

Curious, he slowly pulled the cloth wrap open to reveal a two-tier light pink colored box with sakura prints which definitely suited Shiraishi's feminine style. What was more surprising is what's inside the box. It was rice, freshly made white rice with potato salad, cherry tomatoes, sausage, and stir-fried beef with mushrooms. For a few seconds he just stared at the variety of food before him that he had never seen in the past years.

"Sorry, is there anything that you couldn't eat in there?" He shook his head as he was having second thought about eating the meal she just gave him. It wasn't something from a Michelin-starred restaurant but a homemade meal was a luxury for him. When was the last time he had it? Probably when he came home during his university years, when his grandmother was still healthy enough to walk around the kitchen to prepare him a warm meal.

It had been too long.

"Aizawa?"

" _Itadakimasu._ "

He clapped his hand in front of his chest and dived his chopsticks into the food. His first bite tasted heavenly. The rice was perfectly cooked and tasted so fresh. Her stir-fried beef was so tender unlike the frozen _bento_ 's which was practically rubber after being reheated in the microwave. The tomatoes were so juicy; he never knew just raw fresh cherry tomatoes could taste that good. God, please don't let Shiraishi notice his slightly red and watery eyes as he held himself from tearing up over the meal. It may just be a simple kind gesture from her but for him it felt like a miracle.

Shiraishi stopped eating as she observed him devouring the meal. He finished it to the last piece of rice in less than five minutes, she could take that as a compliment even without being verbally said.

"Thank you." The box was returned to her, wrapped back with cloth exactly the way she had given it to him before. She too put the plastic lid back on top of the convenience store bento with nothing left inside. Of course, it wasn't left unnoticed by the male lifesaving doctor.

"You enjoyed it too, didn't you?" His words made her had to look down to hide her blushing face. She hadn't had any preserved food in around a month and once in a while of course it tasted good, considering the amount of MSG, salt, and everything. Although she still strongly supported her stance, that a homemade meal is better than something bought outside.

"You too, didn't you?" She replied back, looking back at him. At a split second she could see a smile on his face, a sight so rare, the amount she could count with her fingers after all those years of working together.

"Aa." Shiraishi smiled when she heard his usual reply, glad something she enjoyed doing every once in a while could help her friend. Although it might not be a long term solution for her friend's problem. Should she offer cooking for him every day? That would make her such a busy body, right? She wasn't so sure she could handle cooking for two every day. She still went to the canteen for lunch and sometimes bought store-made bread from the convenience store. It wasn't as if she could deliver her meals when they didn't have a shift together–

That's it!

"If you like it, I could make another for you when we have another night duty together." There weren't many of them so they had to work together quite frequently. If it was just those times, she could definitely do it.

Her company didn't answer immediately, so she stole a glance at him to read into his facial expression. Perhaps he didn't like her offer and was finding the right words to reject it as kind as possible, but the look on his face said otherwise. He looked as if he was seriously considering it.

"You sure?"

"Yes." She nodded, a smile still plastered on her face.

"Okay, I'm counting on you. Thanks beforehand."

"Don't mention it." The young woman looked at the watch on her left wrist. Neither of them realized that they had spent more time on their break than expected. She was the first to get up, walking to a bin to dispose the plastic box with her now empty box in the other hand.

"We should go back to writing the medical records, Aizawa-sensei. Let's discuss about the technique you used for patient 7A's procedure last time. It was terrific."

They were back to work mode, not that Aizawa hated it or anything. He too stood and caught up with her as they walked back to their stations, piles of papers waiting to be filled until the morning sun came up in the sky. Before the atmosphere completely disappeared, he said something that he forgot to mention to her just now.

"Shiraishi, about the meal."

"Yes?"

"Please make the portion a bit bigger for me. If it weren't for the half eaten _bento_ I had beforehand I think I will be starved at the end of our shift."

Hearing that, she smiled a bit wider than usual at him and nodded.

"Yes, yes."

Since then on, none of the canteen meals or convenience store _bento_ tasted good in his mouth. He still ate them but he was never satisfied, always looking forward to times when his schedule would coincide with Shiraishi's to have a taste of her homecooked meal.

And that was how she took his heart, beginning from his taste buds.

* * *

Author's Note: I'm soooo sorry for the delay. I've written this in August, so yes this is the first chapter that I actually wrote for the Five Senses series. All I had to do is upload it but I was busy since I moved to the northern part of the island for work and everything was so hectic I barely even had any chance to breathe. Things have settled down for now and I finally have time to upload this (in the middle of work though, lol). Oh well, enough about me and let's talk about our OTP.

I hope this chapter satisfies you, too bad there is still no change in the ratings and everything even if the prompt's taste but I hope you like fluff as much as I do haha. The next one is smell! Please let me know what you think about it, how I may improve, or maybe prompts in the review section below. Yes, I read each and every one of them because they are the ultimate weapon against writer's block. Thank you so much for everyone who read this, especially those who reviewed and favourited. I love you guys so much!

Hugs,

Kimchi/summermelon


	4. Chapter 4: Smell

_Sigh._

Aizawa should've watched the news more often in the morning. If he did, he would've seen the weather forecast that there was a high chance of rain that day and he would've brought an umbrella, but he didn't because he was in such a hurry to check on his patient. It was too late for regrets as he was looking at people passing by with their umbrellas. The sky was covered in thick dark cloud and there was no sign of the rain stopping anytime soon. He couldn't take shelter in front of this convenience store for too long, and it was just his luck that they ran out of umbrellas to sell. Going back to sleep at the hospital was not an option, he was already halfway to his place.

He was seriously considering running through the rain when a particular woman passed by the store. Luckily she noticed his presence and her face lit up like a candle in the dark. She took a little detour and stopped in front of him, when she could have just walked along after giving a polite smile but that wouldn't be the Shiraishi he knew.

"Hello Aizawa-sensei." She did not ask him what he was doing there because it was quite obvious from how he looked. His hair was damp from the rain, droplets of water visible on his skin. He pushed his hands deeper into the pockets of his jeans to warm themselves up. Despite being dense all the time, she could notice the smallest things about her friends, like right now.

"Your apartment is on the same direction as mine, right? Would you like to share?" She gestured at her umbrella, tilting it closer towards him. He knew she would've offered her umbrella even if his house was miles away from her because she was just that kind, the kindness which is rarely found in their profession where rivalry is everything but she had always been that way since day one. They were now working in different departments but they still see each other from time-to-time in the hallway, in the ICU, or occasionally in the canteen but she still treated him just as kind.

"Thank you." He slipped under the umbrella with her as she pushed it just a little bit higher than before to accommodate his height. Aizawa wanted to take over holding the umbrella but she didn't let him, saying 'let me'. It wasn't a big deal so he didn't push her about it. They left the convenience store porch and walked side-by-side through the still pouring rain.

"Don't you usually come here by car?"

"Not today, I woke up a little bit earlier so I decided to get a little exercise but I forgot to check the forecast. Luckily I had a spare umbrella in my locker." She answered. Her place was just a few minutes away by car, and took less than 20 minutes on foot. Only a little bit further from his current apartment.

"I see."

The two doctors continued walking, one feet in front of the other. Besides them there were only a few other passersby and some wild cats along the road. The yellow pedestrian light and the earthy scent of rain set up a weird mood that makes them notice each other's presence even more. The rain made the summer night just a little bit colder but the two felt each other's warmth radiating through the short distance between their shoulders.

As they continued walking, neither of them realized that another car was speeding at them. Aizawa noticed it first so he pulled Shiraishi closer to him, shielding her from the car which splashed puddle water onto his sweatshirt and jeans but apparently he was too slow since it still got on the side of her shirt and pants.

"Damn. Can't he read the signs? He's not supposed to speed at residential areas." She could hear him grumbled as he watched the car disappeared into the distance, still with one of his arm wrapped around her shoulder. Shiraishi didn't say anything, she was still processing the situation, how she ended up being in his arm in a split second. She was practically crushed onto him. At the close proximity she could hear his heartbeat, thumping lightly onto her own chest.

And for the first time she noticed an alien scent, like a mixture of pinewood and men's cologne with a note of their hospital's antiseptic. It was his signature smell and strangely she could feel her mind going blank, heart racing faster as she continued inhaling the scent. Never had she ever gotten this close with any other man beside her father before and it was making her self-conscious. With all the symptoms gathered, there could only be one explanation for her condition. She was intoxicated but in a way that made her want to unconsciously snuggle closer to him.

So she did.

 _Eh?_

She only realized her actions once it had been done. It was too late to retreat because the other party also noticed her moving closer to his body. Shiraishi was ready to push herself away from him and prepare some strange excuse for the 'mishap' but before she could even move, his wrap around her body got a little bit tighter and he buried his nose into her still long black hair, inhaling into the sweet smell of her shampoo, honeysuckle, and a hint of something similar to his own. They were working inside the same building for hours after all, it was inevitable.

The car had long gone away but they were still stuck in the same position enjoying the unfamiliar scent even more than they should have, not until realization hit them both and made the two doctors pulled apart at the same time. Shiraishi looked flustered, trying to hide her blushing cheeks behind her bangs. Meanwhile Aizawa still looked calm as ever though his heart was still thumping heart from the recollection of her own scent. They would never admit it verbally but at that moment they felt the exact same disappointment from the loss of contact.

"Th-Thank you for protecting me earlier, but you got wet." She said, noticing his now drenched sweatshirt and jeans. He just sighed as he realized his own state. He looked just as if he went through the rain without an umbrella though not once did he regret borrowing her umbrella with the little 'bonus' just now. It wasn't as if he would get a cold the next day just from that. The air conditioner in the operating room is even colder and doctors are only protected by a layer of thin cloth over their skin, he too had already gotten used to the cold.

"Don't mention it, you still got wet in the end." Aizawa's comment made her look down to check her own state and that was when she realized something. Her white blouse added with the puddle water, you do the math. Of all days, it happened when she wore a lacy bra too. It was now visible from the side and in the speed of light she crossed her free hand in front of her chest as if to hide it from his view, but it was too late. Being the gentleman he was, Aizawa's immediate reaction was to avert his eyes and think about something else, like the blood flow in the brain. Yes, let's recite them.

 _Internal carotid artery, anterior cerebral artery, anterior communicating artery, middle cerebral artery, lacy things would look good on her, posterior communicating artery..._

WHAT?

They couldn't stand under the rain forever but having Shiraishi walk all the way home at this time of the night alone in that state was definitely not an option. Even if it was a residential area, it was still too dangerous. As much as he wanted to take off his sweatshirt, he was wearing nothing underneath. He couldn't risk being thought as a pervert walking nude beside her, but he had another solution in mind.

"My place is close. I'll lend you something to wear." Usually Shiraishi would've said no out of courtesy but today was an emergency so she immediately nodded. He took the umbrella from her so she could cross both of her hands and move her tote bag to hide her little problem. They walked a bit faster as the rainfall got heavier that her umbrella didn't do much to protect them from getting wet.

They arrived in front of his apartment door almost fully drenched. He didn't waste much time to open the door and let her in. She was still taking off her shoes when he came out with a fresh white towel for her to use.

"Thanks." She used it to dry her face and arms and she wanted to excuse herself quickly from his apartment but mother nature had its own plan as the sound of thunder blasted through their eardrums.

"..."

"..."

"You can wait here until the rain stops."

They both looked at the clock on the wall which shows that it was close to midnight. It was far too late and he could see the anxiety in her eyes.

"I'll take you home."

"But-"

"It's fine. This wouldn't have happened to you if it weren't for me." Aizawa sighed, looking at her miserable state. She shouldn't have stopped to get him, otherwise by that time she would've been safely tucked under her warm duvet.

"No. I wanted to do it so it's my fault." The debate could go on forever and the two knew that it was pointless. Aizawa then gestured for her to get inside. While she was admiring the tidiness of his tiny apartment, he came out of his supposed-to-be bedroom with a clean sweatshirt and his old blue scrub pants on his hands since he thought she would've felt more comfortable with something that looked more familiar.

"You're drenched. They're a bit big but if you want to you could shower and change into these. The bathroom's that way." He gestured at the door near his kitchen. Shiraishi was in no state to decline so she nodded and took the pile of clothes onto her hand. Her tote bag was left at the sofa and she walked into the bathroom to change. Meanwhile, Aizawa also got changed in his own room, waiting for his turn to shower after her if the rain hadn't stopped by then.

It hadn't stopped and the thunder got even more frequent. He sighed and used the bathroom right after her. He needed some time to formulate a plan to avoid the awkwardness tonight. When he got out, he saw her standing in his living room, a towel on her shoulder as she gazed over a framed picture of him and his grandmother that was taken sometime in his university graduation day.

"How is your grandmother?" Her question made him felt taken aback. Nobody else seemed to remember about her since it had been so long since she got admitted. She was just another of their many patients, there was no need for her to remember her presence. But she did, even when she too must have had other issues to take care off.

"Good. Her memories are still foggy sometimes but I think she enjoys living in the facility. She seems to have made so many new friends with the other elders." Aizawa walked over to where she stood, looking at the picture from over her shoulder.

"I see. I'm glad you still see her sometimes."

"Yes, thank you for reminding me to." He still remembered what she said to him in the elevator a few years ago when they were both still in the middle of fellowship and he just saw his grandmother off. She was very attentive to everyone around her. Some may call her a busybody, but she had saved him from time to time with her personality.

She looked up and her gaze fell to his eyes. He was also looking at her intently as his brain tried to process the train of thoughts. They were standing so close to one another and both recalled each other's warmth from the embrace just now. He continued staring at the doe-eyed woman in front of him and saw the mutual drive. The state that she was, in his clearly oversized sweatshirt and pants didn't help with his self-control.

Neither remembered who initiated, but the next morning they were lying beside each other on his bed. A trail of clothes could be seen from the living room to his bedside. They would deal with the aftermath after the alarm rang, but for now let them breathe in each other's scent, which identically smelled like his soap and shampoo.

* * *

 **Author's Note:** I'm soooooo sorry for the long delay. I though I had posted this chapter but apparently didn't while the draft itself had been sitting here for a long time. It's quite short but I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Let me know what you think about it and if there's anything I could improve.

One more chapter to go, and you know what it is ;)


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